bike donations and tax? assigned value?

[Philphine]

i gave away a few bikes this past christmas, but wasn't thinking about the tax part of them being a charitable donation. for most of them i was offered a receipt, but i said i didn't need one. now with all the tax ads on tv i realise i should have considered it.

so can i add them when i do taxes? what value can i give them if so?

i gave a trail along thing and a 20" girls bike that i didn't put any work into. i got them for other projects and didn't use them, so i just made sure the tires held air and donated them. also a ten speed i had picked up cheap that all i did was put a chain on and blew up the tires. actual money i had in all of them was in the $55-60 range

i also gave two of the stretches i had taking up room in the garage. i had made them for family that didn't want them and i wanted them to be ridden (what got the idea started in the first place). i don't know exactly what i had in them. most of the cruiser bikes i started with average out in about the $30 range, and most of the parts are from my parts pile. i guess i could say they're custom, but i don't know what value that might add. i'd say as a straight cash outlay together i have about $100 in them, maybe $120-150 if i really push it

so can i add them as donations? at best as proof i have the thread where i discussed finishing the stretches and giving them all away. hopefully it wouldn't be a red flag type deal. it's about a $200-250 amount as straight cost to me, or can i assign more value to them?
thanks for any help.

 

[yoothgeye]

You keep saying you gave them away, but did you give them to a thrift store or other non-profit? If you did, all of the ones I donate to give you a receipt that you fill out yourself, so with the photo proof above (if anyone comes asking) I'd say you can list them all yourself. If they need to sign off on it, you'd have to find someone that will remember you at least bringing a couple. If you gave them away to individuals, you're out of luck.

 

[outskirtscustoms]

Sweet stretch bikes! As far as the tax thing with no receipt I don't know if you can add them on there or not. As far as value goes The tag along bike would be $30-$40, Little girl's Schwinn $10-$20, 10 speed $20-$40, and the customs $100-$150 EACH. I am going by what my local second hand store would charge because I have seen (and bought) similar bikes there.

 

[Philphine]

well, the three bikes and one stretch i gave to a local christian mission. i guess if i went back and lucked into seeing the same person, they might remember me. the other stretch i gave to the neighborhood community center. i don't know if they're considered a charitable organization. i was just figuring give one away closer to or within my own community. i won't be doing taxes 'til the end of the month at soonest, maybe i can look into getting some reciepts, or at least one from the mission.

 

[jerrykr]

Turbo Tax - It's Deductable deduction tool values bicycles pretty low.
Adult - $19 and Youth $29 (I know, that's backwards in the real world).
Most items they try to value at "garage sale" pricing.

I think that you can make a list of the bikes you donated (hand written is fine),
and assign a value that you think you would have been able to sell them for.
Add it up and put the total in with your other donations.
The charity that you donated to would not have placed a value on the bikes for you,
they just give you a receipt that shows that you donated.

You don't need receipts to file a tax return.
You DO need receipts if you itemize and get audited.

You don't list individual items on the tax return, just total $ amounts.

Unless you have a boat load of donations and medical costs, you probably won't be able to itemize on your tax return anyway.
You most likely will be filing with Standard Deductions, so individual items become a moote point.
Standard Deductions usually gives you more credit than you can come up with by itemizing.

If you use a tax tool like Turbo Tax, it's a good idea to enter everything and try to itemize.
Turbo Tax will at the end, tell you whether your best course is std deductions or itemizing.
If you end up using std deductions, none of the itemizing detail that you input into Turbo Tax goes into your return.
You are just arriving at the best way for you to file.

It all depends on your individual situation of course.

Disclaimer: I am in no way a tax professional or in any way qualified to give tax advice, and I do not offer it as such. I am only commenting based on my own many many years of submitting tax returns.

BTW: Intuit's -- It's Deductable is a very nice FREE data base tool to organize all of your tax deductable donations. It helps you assign value to just about anything that you may have donated, and IMHO is pretty generous on the value of certain things like clothing. You can enter your data all year long, or all at once at tax time. If you use Turbo Tax, it can all be imported into the preparations for your return automatically. If you don't use Turbo Tax, it at least gives you all the totals, and you can print it for your records.

http://turbotax.intuit.com/personal-tax ... eductible/

Disclaimer #2: I am not affiliated in any way with Intuit - Turbo Tax - It's Deductable. I am just a satisfied user.
.

 

[Philphine]

i've been doing h&r block the last 7-8 years...

i used to do my own, but my ex insisted on it when we got married. math was like some mystic art to her and she couldn't belive i could come up with the right numbers. since buying the house and other things i haven't retried it myself since the devorce. sooner or later i'll fill out a form and compare it to theirs to see if i can come up with the right results. anyway....

... and they always ask if i've done any charitable donations, so i guess they're doing the full itemization deal. they'll be the only thing, so hopefully it won't look suspicious, like many more hundreds or thousands in deductions or something. i'll just leave it at what they cost me unless they say otherwise.

i'm going to mention it i guess when they ask. hopefully if they have internet i can just show them the thread and pics if they want, and they can decide, if i don't get back and see about the reciept deal by then.